Gurgaon: The right to alienate property is an “indispensable right of an owner”, Haryana Real Estate Regulatory Authority (HRera) has ruled. Denying such a right amounts to a violation of the owner’s legal right, Rera said, awarding an 11% annual interest on Rs 27 lakh to a buyer. The ruling — dated Sept 10 — came following a complaint filed by Sukhvir against Apex Build-well concerning a commercial shop in the promoter’s project in Sector 37C.The right to alienate property allows an owner to voluntarily sell, transfer, gift or assign property rights to another person. Rera said a fully paid property buyer cannot be left without a remedy to transfer his property merely because the promoter has failed to execute the conveyance deed. In simpler words: Owners can transfer property even before registry if she/she has made full payment.Sukhvir had paid Rs 27 lakh to the promoter and had taken physical possession of the shop. The promoter had obtained the occupation certificate (OC) on Feb 24, 2020. Under Section 17(1) of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, the conveyance deed was required to be executed within three months. However, the deed in favour of Sukhvir was executed only on Jan 5, 2023. During this period, Sukhvir sought to transfer the shop to Shiv Kumar and Priyanka Sharma. The proposed purchasers had completed the requisite formalities and submitted the required documents and undertakings, but the promoter did not execute the conveyance deed in their favour.Rera found that the delay had effectively deprived the complainant of the opportunity to complete the proposed transaction when he needed funds. Adjudicating officer Rajender Kumar consequently directed the promoter to pay 11% annual interest on Rs 27,05,344 for the period from May 24, 2020, to Jan 5, 2023. The promoter was also directed to pay Rs 1 lakh towards mental harassment and agony and Rs 50,000 towards litigation expenses.The case is significant for property buyers who have paid the promoter the entire sale consideration but are awaiting execution of the registered conveyance deed. The order makes it clear that a promoter cannot use its failure or delay in executing the conveyance deed as a means of effectively preventing a fully paid allottee from dealing with the property.The authority’s reasoning draws an important line between the promoter’s obligation to execute the conveyance deed and the buyer’s proprietary rights. Once the consideration has been fully paid and the buyer has acquired the rights recognised in the order, the promoter cannot simply frustrate a proposed transfer by withholding the conveyance deed.The ruling, however, does not mean that a registered conveyance deed or other legally required documentation can simply be dispensed with in every property transaction. Rather, its significance lies in holding that a promoter cannot rely on its own delay in completing conveyance formalities to arbitrarily restrain a fully paid buyer from exercising the right to alienate the property. For thousands of buyers caught between full payment and delayed conveyance, the order could provide an important legal argument against promoters using pending registry formalities to control subsequent transfers.
